tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3253175097489598862014-12-19T14:30:41.740+13:00popculturALComics, movies, tv, music, books, manga, sci-fi, fantasy, cosplay, entertainment - this is your place for all things PopculturAL at Auckland Libraries! Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.comBlogger1764125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-59910791353405628892014-12-19T13:59:00.000+13:002014-12-19T14:10:16.405+13:00I like Popular Music (ssshh!)Cast your mind back to a time long, long ago. An analogue time. A time when indie was still short for independent, and alternative music was actually an alternative to something. That was me, in my youth, rebelling in that particular way that only white girls from middle class suburbs can: listening to alternative music, wearing weird clothes and generally trying to be different to everyone else. <p><p>Which is why this former indie kid is now coming out of the closet to share a dark secret: I like popular music. I like listening to number one hits! (But old ones). I’m not alternative, I’m actually (spoiler!!) just like everyone else. <p><p> Now, I’m not talking about the kind of popular music that is the demon spawn of reality TV shows, I’m just talking about good old-fashioned bands, writing their own songs and playing their own instruments. And then selling a billion records. <p><p>There are some records that were, and still are, insanely popular and I am a-ok with being part of a large and homogenous population who loves these records: <p><p> <b>Fleetwood Mac ‘Rumours’</b> <p><p> Released in 1977, it was number one in New Zealand, it won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1978 and it sold over 45 million copies worldwide. It was made while the band members were breaking up with each other, having affairs with each other, partying like rock stars, and writing songs about it all. It’s so hard to choose just one song from ‘Rumours’ because I love the whole album, but here’s a live version of ‘Rhiannon’ with the gorgeous Stevie Nicks and her amazing voice, looking both intoxicating and intoxicated. <p><p> <iframe width="560" height="399" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wgmRb3MlpHQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <p><p> <b>Paul Simon ‘Graceland’</b> <p><p> Released in 1986, it was number one in New Zealand, it won the Grammy for Album of the year in 1987, and sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Paul Simon collaborated with South African musicians during the apartheid regime to make this incredible record. It was critically acclaimed and hugely popular and I can’t get enough of it. <p><p> <iframe width="560" height="399" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-I_T3XvzPaM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <p><p> <b>The Rolling Stones – pretty much everything they’ve ever done</b> <p><p> The Rolling Stones are a band from England, you may have heard of them. They have been doing rock and roll for a while now, for oh, just about FIFTY YEARS, PEOPLE! They have sold an estimated 200 million records worldwide. I couldn’t find an exact number for record sales because the number is simply so big that it will break the internet. There is no situation where a little bit (or a lot) of Rolling Stones won’t improve things. They have so many great albums and so many great songs. Here’s one of my fave songs from their five decades of awesomeness, from 1966, with Brian Jones rocking the marimba. <p><p> <iframe width="560" height="399" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/JcgZIz0Fd-w" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <p><p> <b>Bruce Springsteen ‘Born in the USA’</b> <p><p> Released in 1984, Born in the USA is an album full of hits, selling 30 million copies worldwide. I saw Bruce this year in concert in Auckland and he played the WHOLE ALBUM FROM TOP TO BOTTOM and it was amazing. Here’s the Boss, a regular working-class millionaire, Dancing in the Dark with Monica from Friends. <p><p> <iframe width="560" height="399" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/129kuDCQtHs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <p><p> <b>Patea Maori Club ‘Poi-e'</b> <p><p> A one-hit wonder, released in 1984, Poi-e was sung in Maori and celebrated Maori culture. Number one in New Zealand for four weeks, and revived in Taika Waititi’s movie ‘Boy’ in 2010. This song represents everything that is good with the world. It gives me chills, it's so good. Here is the original music video (check out the break dancing and roller skating at 2:15!) <p><p> <iframe width="560" height="399" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/DQLUygS0IAQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Louise Harperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06437078443839551419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-32712149727947201292014-12-18T16:00:00.000+13:002014-12-18T17:13:45.858+13:00Shirley Jackson, I *heart* you!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fazbpN6JRpY/VH94SmaaV9I/AAAAAAAAAmg/YWG5NH08lN8/s1600/The%2BLottery%2B.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fazbpN6JRpY/VH94SmaaV9I/AAAAAAAAAmg/YWG5NH08lN8/s1600/The%2BLottery%2B.jpg" height="640" width="402" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;">I’ve been finding it a bit hard to read fiction for the past year or so – I find comfort in non-fiction and academic writing because it is polemic and ushers you to a necessary point of view. Thus, when approaching fiction, I have been reading a lot of short stories – the length is enticing, obviously, when you’re out of shape and tire easily when tackling a novel. And because they’re short they must be sharp, which takes the stress out of it all. However, in my short story endeavors, the work of Shirley Jackson has enticed me and demanded revisiting for a lot of the reason that fiction has sort of scared me for a while. She can be obtuse and confusing and often leaves me just wanting to ask the internet what the rest of the world thought so I have something to say other than “It was really cool and moody, I liked it”. &nbsp;But yes, her work is very, very moody and very, very cool and I really, really like it. The more I read her the more I’m convinced that everybody could and should enjoy her.&nbsp;</span></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;">Though I’d never come across it before I discovered Jackson’s other works, ‘The Lottery’ is a story everyone else around me seemed to know. It is chilling and dark and involves ritual slaughter, and seems an obvious precursor to Battle Royale/The Hunger Games etc. My personal favourites’ of her short stories are ‘The Renegade” and “The Tooth”, both great examples of that women-in-the-50s-ish-era-going-mad kind of oeuvre, which is something Jackson does exceedingly well. The Tooth is lush and surreal and shows you one woman going a bit crazy, and The Renegade is claustrophobic and intensely creepy and shows you absolutely everyone in the life of one unfortunate lonely woman going crazy, which of course happens after they relocate from the city to a sleepy small town. The Renegade is one that really terrified me and stuck with me for days – and will probably do the same to anyone alarmed by the idea of your loved ones becoming alien and threatening overnight, or anyone who owns a beloved pet.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;">Other than mastering Twin-Peaksy restlessness and vaguely paranormal undertones in her short stories, Jackson also does so in a more perplexing and modernist fashion in her novel “Hangsaman”. Hangsaman is really what I’m talking about when I say that after reading her I feel helpless and want to ask the internet for an opinion to spout. It’s a confusing and unique work of fiction that I can’t stop picking over in my head. At face value it’s about a young girl who goes away to university and gets driven mad by all the things that can drive you mad at university – cliques and gossip, academic stress, displacement, identity crises, etc. It’s also about the mysterious internal world of the adolescent female (which generally is literary crack to me) and odd female friendships based on Heavenly Creatures-esque fantasy worlds (also like crack to me). But it’s so much less straightforward than that for many reasons, including its ability to conjure very real dread out of not a whole lot (indeed less than in Jackson’s short stories) and its slightly frustrating but mostly disorienting nonlinear structure and abrupt ending. As an added bonus, it ceaselessly but subtly mocks academia so there’s opportunity to smirk amongst all the brow furrowing.</div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div><div style="text-align: left;">Anyway, my point is: if you like Hunger Games, read the short story ‘The Lottery’. Further than that if you like chic Twin-Peaksy creepiness, read the rest of the short stories in the collection titled “The Lottery”. And if you like all of the above as well as lush interior modernist fiction, read “Hangsaman” and become obsessed with Shirley Jackson like I now am.</div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zo0fHBPPArI/VH94aUVVuwI/AAAAAAAAAmk/Z0FxbI3pz7o/s1600/jackson_shirley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zo0fHBPPArI/VH94aUVVuwI/AAAAAAAAAmk/Z0FxbI3pz7o/s1600/jackson_shirley.jpg" height="400" width="313" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Shirley Jackson: December 14, 1916 - August 8, 1965<span style="color: #545454; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.2000007629395px;">.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-58570397256154912642014-12-17T16:05:00.002+13:002014-12-17T16:05:38.249+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas:Snow, Tinsel & Angst, In Other Words TV Christmas SpecialsAs you can probably tell by now Christmas is my thing.&nbsp; And as with all things I have a special weakest for Christmas television.<br /><br />Forgot about watching The Sound of Music for the 100th time or The Queen's Message.&nbsp; Sappy, sentimental, angst filled is what it's all about.&nbsp; The angstier the better, though I do enjoy some humour as well.<br /><br />It will also come as no surprise that some of my favourite Christmas episodes come from some of my favourite TV shows.&nbsp; How's that for perfection.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mAyKNyf0TRE/VJC6DsCOQEI/AAAAAAAABGQ/D2WpwGN7kmU/s1600/superna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mAyKNyf0TRE/VJC6DsCOQEI/AAAAAAAABGQ/D2WpwGN7kmU/s1600/superna.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2500930~S32">Supernatural: A Very Supernatural Christmas</a><br /><br />My absolute all time favourite Christmas episode.<br /><br />EVER.<br /><br />There's angst and humour and things that go bump in the night and brothers being brothers.<br /><br />I adore times 1000<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6tVqHAnZ7gk/VJC7MtqJ8NI/AAAAAAAABGY/WRcG7ukweKw/s1600/buffy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6tVqHAnZ7gk/VJC7MtqJ8NI/AAAAAAAABGY/WRcG7ukweKw/s1600/buffy.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2282038~S32">Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Amends</a><br /><br />Well if Supernatural has angst then this Buffy episode is even angstier.<br /><br />If that's even possible.<br /><br />There is also snow.&nbsp; And that is reason enough to watch it. <br /><br />It is also completely and utterly beautiful and romantic.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B9uBPVIIqPU/VJC-J5l2YUI/AAAAAAAABGk/fgmGxP6LDsM/s1600/gilmore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B9uBPVIIqPU/VJC-J5l2YUI/AAAAAAAABGk/fgmGxP6LDsM/s1600/gilmore.jpg" height="238" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2299237~S32">Gilmore Girls: Santa's Secret Stuff</a><br /><br />I sense a marathon coming on because it's been ages since I've watched this show.<br /><br />I love this because there's tinsel and peppermint chocolate and Christmas sweaters.<br /><br />And of course Lorelai and Rory.&nbsp; Being... well Lorelai and Rory. <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YhlLKbNu36M/VJDAE2bYgUI/AAAAAAAABGw/QJht_hKhlNc/s1600/mindy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YhlLKbNu36M/VJDAE2bYgUI/AAAAAAAABGw/QJht_hKhlNc/s1600/mindy.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2801112~S32">The Mindy Project: Josh and Mindy's Christmas Party</a><br /><br />1. It features my favourite Christmas song Christmas Wrapping by the Waitresses.&nbsp;&nbsp; 2. It's funny,&nbsp; And 3.&nbsp; It's so relatable. Because yeah there's Christmas heartache.<br /><br />Did I mention I liked angst.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L-vGsvowq_0/VJDHYJKeiKI/AAAAAAAABHA/Z7W-wHWpyMg/s1600/frasier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L-vGsvowq_0/VJDHYJKeiKI/AAAAAAAABHA/Z7W-wHWpyMg/s1600/frasier.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2017188~S32">Frasier: Miracle on Third or Fourth Street</a><br /><br />Sometimes Christmas is just depressing.<br /><br />Or at least it is in Frasier's world.<br /><br />Especially when he works on Christmas Day.<br /><br />I like the fact that he can turn up to work in his sloppiness clothes.<br /><br />I wonder if I could do that at my work...<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tifv7qpLa3w/VJDutMcPb7I/AAAAAAAABHQ/J4CzrXJxGvE/s1600/big%2Bbang.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tifv7qpLa3w/VJDutMcPb7I/AAAAAAAABHQ/J4CzrXJxGvE/s1600/big%2Bbang.jpg" height="210" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2570388~S32">The Big Bang Theory: The Maternal Congruence</a><br /><br />I'm a fan of The Big Bang Theory... or at least of the earlier seasons which are so funny..<br /><br />And their Christmas episodes are even better.&nbsp;<br /><br />Because Christmas and Sheldon.syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-58363100615880273572014-12-15T11:14:00.001+13:002014-12-15T11:14:03.883+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: Just For Kids... And Maybe Adults TooI almost wish I had kids just so I could buy all the lovely children's Christmas books that are around.&nbsp; Because that way I would have an excuse to read them too.<br /><br />Somehow I don't think my 6ft tall body building step son would appreciate a book called Bear Stays Up For Christmas.&nbsp; Unless of course he's a secret children's book reader which I somehow doubt.<br /><br />Luckily for me I work at a Library where I can freely get all the children's books I want.&nbsp; All in the name of writing blog posts.&nbsp; <br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780545613781/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780545613781/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="133" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2948429~S1">The Angel Tree</a> / Daphne Benedis-Grab.<br /><br /><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Every Christmas in the small town of Pine River, a tree appears in the town square and people tie wishes to it, but nobody knows where the tree comes from--but this year four children are determined to solve the mystery of the Angel Tree.</span> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780545627771/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780545627771/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="137" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2869234~S1">The 12 screams of Christmas</a> / R.L. Stine.<br /><br /><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">When "frenemies" Kate and Courtney need a quiet place to rehearse for their school's Christmas play, their teacher suggests an old house that might just be haunted.</span> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781407147741/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781407147741/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="153" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2867477~S1">The big fat Christmas book</a> / Terry Deary<br /><br />The Big Fat Christ Book is full of festive things that go bump in the night - the perfect read on a cold winter's night when you're waiting for Santa to bring a sleigh full of goodies.<br /><br />Christmas will never be the same again.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781782951032/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781782951032/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="164" /></a>&nbsp; <b>&nbsp;</b><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2934101~S1">The sheep that saved Christmas : a eweltide tale </a>/ written by Jason Page.<br /><br /><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Cynthia LOVES Christmas. So much so that her flockmates send her off to the North Pole to help Father Christmas. But it turns out that there isn't much an enthusiastic sheep can do to help with Christmas - until one crucial moment.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781471123078/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781471123078/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="178" width="200" /></a><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection"></span><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2330252~S1">Bear stays up for Christmas</a> / Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman.<br /><br /><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Bear's friends are determined that he's awake for Christmas and they get him up from his hibernation on Christmas Eve. Bear is excited to experience the holiday with his friends and tries very hard to stay awake, helping to find the right Christmas tree, making mint tea and singing carols. Finally, though, it's his friends who have fallen asleep - and Bear Stays Up!&nbsp;</span><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780007542826/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780007542826/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="162" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2935952~S1">Rudey's windy Christmas</a> / Helen Baugh &amp; Ben Mantle.<br /><br />Oh, dearie me! said Rudolph. Now I've done a windy pop! This is a bit embarrassing. I'll do my best to stop. Rudolph has eaten too many sprouts and the explosive effect is smelt all around the world as he and Santa delivers presents on Christmas Eve...The other reindeer have laughed so much, they're out of puff. How ever will they get the sleigh back home? <br /><br /><br /><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection"></span><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="3" style="width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td class="bibInfoLabel" valign="top" width="20%"><br /></td><td class="bibInfoData"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-64145880996128892902014-12-12T16:30:00.000+13:002014-12-12T16:30:27.608+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: Excuse Me While I Curl Up On The Sofa...I'm a sucker for a good romance story and I have a special weakest for Christmas romance stories.&nbsp; There's just something about these holiday themed books that makes me feel all warm and glowy and probably explains, at least in part, my addiction to all things Christmasy.<br /><br />Luckily here at Auckland Libraries we have heap to choose from so I have no trouble in adding to my growing to-be-read pile which at this time of year can get rather... big.&nbsp; It's a good thing I have a very large book bag to take them all home with.<br /><br />Still it's worthwhile because I can then curl up on the sofa with a bowl of cherries, a mince pie... or two and a pile of books to work my way through. <br /><br />The only problem is deciding which one to start with first...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781455557165/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781455557165/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="123" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2941005~S1">Mistletoe on Main Street </a>/ Olivia Miles.<br /><br /><i><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Briar Creek's quaint shop windows, cozy homes nestled in snow, and neighborly residents are what Christmas dreams are made of--for everyone except Grace Madison. She left her hometown years ago to pursue a writing career. But when her father's death leaves his bookstore empty, Grace must return to face why she fled Vermont in the first place: Luke Hastings, who still heats her up like a shot of smoky whiskey on a cold winter's night.</span> </i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781939713155/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781939713155/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="131" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2850046~S1">Where the heart is</a> / Darcy Blake.<br /><br /><i><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">The simple life is all Chloe English hoped it would be until her house burns down, leaving her homeless. When a handsome firefighter swoops in to save the day, she can't believe her luck. He's laid-back and unassuming, everything she's looking for in a man - or so he seems. It turns out he's as ambitious as her ex, comes with a family who could be more stifling than hers, and harbors dark secrets he may never be able to share. Can she help him face his bleak past so they can forge a happy future?</span></i> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780778316398/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780778316398/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="126" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2940950~S1">The heart of Christmas</a> / Brenda Novak.<br /><br /><i><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Eve Harmon has always enjoyed Christmas, but this year it reminds her of everything she doesn't have.&nbsp; A husband and kids of her own. But the B and B she manages, and even Whiskey Creek, the small Gold Country town where she was born and raised, suddenly seem confining. There's no one in the area she could even imagine as a husband until a handsome stranger comes to town. Eve's definitely attracted to him, and he seems to have the same reaction to her. But his darkly mysterious past could ruin Eve's happily ever after just when it finally seems within reach.&nbsp;</span></i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781420131550/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781420131550/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="121" /></a><i><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection"></span></i><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2927204~S1">All he wants for Christmas</a> / Lisa Plumley.<br /><br /><i><span class="bibContentSectionDefault" id="copySection">Jason Hamilton is on thin ice with the board of his toy company. The young CEO may be a kid at heart, but his party boy reputation requires damage control. So, Jason's off to Kismet to inspect a model store and stick to business--no goofing around. Which is too bad, because the store manager, Danielle Sharpe, is the definition of what makes Naughty fun. Danielle is thrilled to show off her thriving little toy store. But if she'd known Jason was this hot, she wouldn't have offered to host him. </span></i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781909490673/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781909490673/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="129" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2948326~S1">A Christmas to remember</a> / Jenny Hale. <br /><br /><i><span id="freeText11716491217272533079">Carrie Blake loves her job as a nanny but, while her friends are settling down, all of Carrie’s spare time is spent with other people’s families. Though it breaks her heart, her New Year’s resolution is to embark on a new career and fix her love life.&nbsp; As Carrie starts her last job, she’s sure she’ll be going out on a high - the only problem could be her boss… single-dad Adam Fletcher might be both handsome and successful, but he’s always working.&nbsp;</span></i><br /><i><br /></i><i><span id="freeText11716491217272533079">Doesn’t he realise he’s missing out on precious moments with his son and daughter?</span></i><br /><span id="freeText11716491217272533079"></span><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2922037~S1">It must have been the mistletoe</a> / Judy Astley.<br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780593074404/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780593074404/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="127" /></a><br /><i>Thea's parents have split up but still seem to be together. Both her younger sister and her brother are Smug Marrieds. But Thea is single and very much wishes she wasn't. When her mother and father plan a great family Christmas in a big house by the sea, the idea is to make it all great fun and tremendously civilised - not remotely complicated despite the fact that what they will really be celebrating is the final break-up of their marriage and the Moving On to new partners. And the new partners will also be there - and why not? It's what they do in Sweden, apparently, and it all works out fine. But will they move on? And will Thea manage to navigate her way through the forced jollities and family disasters to find some happiness for herself?</i>syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-60160134561695806012014-12-11T15:02:00.004+13:002014-12-11T15:02:48.846+13:00Site TweaksThe Auckland Libraries Blog is undergoing a little refurbishment - nothing major, so you may notice the layout and style shifting a little over the next day or so. Sorry for any interim glitches this may create - we hope it will result in a better reading experience!<br /><br /><br />Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-38471205901220507622014-12-10T12:14:00.000+13:002014-12-10T12:14:07.440+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: Eat Until You Can't Or O I Feel SickTrying to stick to a diet or at the very least eat healthy is just about impossible at this time of year. Everywhere you go there is food. &nbsp;It's almost like &nbsp;everything yummy and bad for you has leapt off the shelves and is following you around, tempting you with seductive words.<br /><br />Or maybe that's just me.<br /><br />Still Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without at least having one it-taste-so-good-even-though-it's-bad-for-you morsel or two<br /><br />In the meantime I'm avoiding all supermarket aisles, shops, cinemas... mmm maybe I should just stay at home.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780224101011/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780224101011/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="171" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2925961~S1">Christmas on a plate</a><br /><br />Edible gifts.<br /><br />Who ever invented this should be shot. <br /><br />Because seriously it's hard enough to avoid temptation without someone giving you a gift of food.<br /><br />Then again...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=1628368756/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=1628368756/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="200" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2936083~S1">Creative cookie swap cookbook: recipes and holiday inspiration</a><br /><br />I've been looking for Christmas cookies.<br /><br />Not for myself you understand.<br /><br />No my search as been a purely gift giving idea.<br /><br />The only problem is now I want to try each one. &nbsp;All in the name of research of course<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780224098953/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780224098953/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="138" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2925963~S1">Primrose Bakery Christmas</a><br /><div><br /></div><div>I have no idea where Primrose Bakery is but if I did you would probably find me there...</div><div><br /></div><div>... a lot.</div><div><br /></div><div>I might even move in...</div><div><br /></div><div>...if they let me</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781849755573/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781849755573/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="198" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2950435~S1">Gluten-free Christmas: delicious cookies, cakes, pies, stuffings and sauces for the perfect festive table</a><br />Of course if you're trying to be good this festive season then going gluten-free may just be the answer.<br /><br />So it's certainly nice to know that there are heaps of recipes to choose from if you do decide to go that way.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781616288235/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781616288235/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="158" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2870609~S1">Summer food: new summer classics</a><br /><br />I just love this time of year. &nbsp;And not just because of all the Christmas type food. &nbsp;But because of all the even yummier summer food... like cherries.<br /><br />Mmm cherries<br /><br />They are my absolute favourite. &nbsp;But I also love strawberries and blackberries and water melon and plums and...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781623540203/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781623540203/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="178" width="200" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2864492~S1">Chocolate, chocolate &amp; more chocolate!</a><br /><br />Anyone who knows me knows that I am a choc-alcoholic.<br /><br />So as much as I'm going to try to be good and live on all the wonderful summer fruits and vegetables I will, more than likely - okay make that definitely - be having some chocolate at some stage.<br /><br />Because chocolate is the answer to everything. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781452127828/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781452127828/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="150" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2950360~S1">Cocktails for the holidays: festive drinks to celebrate the season</a><br /><br />If you've had enough of the Christmas season and all the food and the shopping and all the other things that you just have to do at this time of year then you might just be tempted to have a drink or two.<br /><br />Cocktails are the answer.<br /><br />Bright and pretty and they'll make you feel happy too.syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-76496919109508712942014-12-09T16:55:00.000+13:002014-12-10T09:59:33.805+13:00Christmas songs that get me into the festive mood<br />Do you love listening to Christmas songs? Or are you a Christmas Grinch?<br /><br />As I come from a cold country (Wales) I find it hard to get into the Christmas spirit with the hot weather New Zealand gets at Christmas time. So to help bring on those Christmas jiggles and smiles I listen to Christmas songs. Below I have compiled a list of my "go-to" festive songs. Hope you get some enjoyment out of them too. Do you have a favourite Christmas song?<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: red;">Crofts Family - The First Noel</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/Zm3Iig5fqac/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Zm3Iig5fqac&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Zm3Iig5fqac&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><b></b><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><b><b><span style="color: red;">Michael Buble - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas&nbsp;</span></b></b></div><b></b><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/CnJLgQFrc3c/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/CnJLgQFrc3c&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/CnJLgQFrc3c&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: red;">Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/yXQViqx6GMY/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/yXQViqx6GMY&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/yXQViqx6GMY&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: red;">Norah Jones - It Came Upon A Midnight Clear</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/s0lLeImcMxM/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/s0lLeImcMxM&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/s0lLeImcMxM&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: red;">Anya Marina - I Want A&nbsp;Hippopotamus&nbsp;for Christmas</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/cXTcuzsBe_Y/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/cXTcuzsBe_Y&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/cXTcuzsBe_Y&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><b><span style="color: red;">Kelly Clarkson - Underneath The Tree</span></b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/YfF10ow4YEo/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/YfF10ow4YEo&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/YfF10ow4YEo&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><br /><br />LibraryGalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06139890038372010057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-63680273345380574852014-12-08T12:28:00.000+13:002014-12-12T15:20:51.099+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: A Little Bit Something DifferentChristmas music,<br /><br />Love it or loath it, it's kind of unavoidable at this time of year so it's always nice to discover something new.<br /><br />Personally I'm always on the look out for something just a little bit different for my Christmas listening and luckily there is heaps to choose from, whether it's a new version of an old favourite or a new-new song that you end up playing on constant replay,<br /><br />Though if you do you may just drive those around you to throw the stereo across the room or take to it with a sledgehammer,<br /><br /><b>Christmas Was Better In The 80's / The Futureheads</b><br /><b><br /></b>No surprise really that I would like something like this.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/SHNpS-pnH-M/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/SHNpS-pnH-M&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/SHNpS-pnH-M&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><b>I Saw Three Ships / Sting</b><br /><br />I adore this version so much. It's one of those songs that makes you feel all warm and happy.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/CeUBgb5xaPQ/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/CeUBgb5xaPQ&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/CeUBgb5xaPQ&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2954556~S17">Mary, Did You Know? / Pentatonix</a><br /><br />I very new discovery for me, this is another old song given a new twist and is just beautiful.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/ifCWN5pJGIE/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/ifCWN5pJGIE&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/ifCWN5pJGIE&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><b>Have Yourself &nbsp;A Merry Little Christmas / Jensen Ackles</b><br /><br />You just knew that I had to include this. &nbsp;After all it's &nbsp;not every day that one of the actors from one of my favourite shows releases a song. &nbsp;Even better it's actually really good. Totally&nbsp;swoony worthy...<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/xxfw6hYkZRU/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/xxfw6hYkZRU&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/xxfw6hYkZRU&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><b>Text Me Merry Christmas / Straight No Chaser &amp; Kristen Bell</b><br /><br />You've got to have a least one slightly goofy Christmas song and this one seems to be it for this year. That its gone viral on YouTube probably comes as no surprise.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/EmhfdQlOiy0/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/EmhfdQlOiy0&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/EmhfdQlOiy0&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />Also check out some of Christmas CD's that we have got such as&nbsp;<a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2954652~S17">Now That's What I Call Christmas</a>&nbsp;which features a realm of &nbsp;favourite Christmas rock, pop and ballad songs as well as <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2947779~S17">Christmas at Downton Abbey&nbsp;</a>&nbsp;and <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2946015~S17">Holiday Wishes</a> by Idina Menzel <br /><br />Also see last year's post&nbsp;<a href="http://rodneylibraries.blogspot.co.nz/2013/12/not-your-average-christmas-music.html">Not Your Average Christmas Music</a>syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-41215620452472524172014-12-07T13:46:00.002+13:002014-12-07T13:48:58.329+13:00Movie stars who sing for their supperIt's so reassuring to know someone as talented and beautiful as Jennifer Lawrence, who has her choice of Hollywood roles and Hollywood men and picks up award nominations like I pick up milk, suffers self doubt like the rest of us mere mortals.<br /><br />JLaw was <a href="http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2014-11-10/horrified-jennifer-lawrence-cried-before-having-to-sing-in-latest-hunger-games-mockingjay-part-1">in the news recently</a> as director of <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2483730">The Hunger Games: Mockingjay</a> Part 1&nbsp;Francis Lawrence (no relation) revealed the actress was so stressed and upset about having to sing, she cried before the recording of Katniss' song, The Hanging Tree - even with training sessions from a vocal coach beforehand.<br /><br />She needn't have worried: it turns out fans love her husky voice and the bluesy tone of the song and the self proclaimed "Tone-Deaf Amy Winehouse' has a hit single on her hands. This week The Hanging Tree is No. 12 and No. 14 on the Australian (ARIA) and U.K. singles charts respectively, and it looks set to also make its Top 40 debut on the Billboard Hot 100. Sales figures estimate 150,000 downloads in its first week.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/14H8OzTzne4/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/14H8OzTzne4&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/14H8OzTzne4&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><br />All of this got me thinking about other actors who have belted out a tune or two in their roles, with varying levels of success - both audibly and chart-wise. So I strapped on my judgy pants and went scouring the internet.<br /><br /><b>Kate Winslet </b>secretly recorded the single <i>What If</i> for the animated remake of the Charles Dickens classic, <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2025811">A Christmas Carol</a> back in 2001. &nbsp;The Titanic actress' voice is plaintive and aching and I reckon perfect for this ballad of longing and regret. Europe thought so too; it made it to #6 on the UK charts and #1 in Ireland, Belguim and Austria.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/_vId_4r925o/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_vId_4r925o&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_vId_4r925o&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />We're used to <b>Jason Segel </b>making us laugh (and cringe) in films like Knocked Up and The Five Year Engagement and of course the telly show How I Met Your Mother. But the funnyman blew everyone away with his soulful voice and big note belting in <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2675691">The Muppets' movie</a> song Man or Muppet, written by our own&nbsp;Bret McKenzie. It earned a stack of nominations for best original song in the movies' award season but failed to make any impact chart-wise, "peaking" (if you can call it that) at #121 on the UK singles chart.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/-WWWTW1P8rQ/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/-WWWTW1P8rQ&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/-WWWTW1P8rQ&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />You could not go anywhere in the summer of 2000 without hearing&nbsp;<b>Gwyneth Paltrow</b> and Huey Lewis' remake of the Smokey Robinson classic Cruisin'. In fact we loved it so much in New Zealand it went to #1 here (as well as Australia) but didn't even crack the Billboard Top 40 in the US. The movie it was from <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b1430852">Duets</a> might be completely forgettable but it didn't stop the former Mrs Martin trying the singing thing again in her 2010 movie Country Strong.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/U_HaoZ73wWg/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/U_HaoZ73wWg&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/U_HaoZ73wWg&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />So his voice probably isn't going to make you fall down in rapturous abandon, but <b>Ewen McGregor </b>did a not-too-shabby job in his all singing and all dancing role of Christian in <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2139125">Moulin Rouge!</a> While I personally find <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YsMvzgeSuI">his duet of Come What May with co-star Nicole Kidman</a> ear-bleedingly painful, his cover of Elton John's beloved Your Song is much better suited to his voice, especially in its quieter moments. However the soundtrack clearly struck the right note (bad pun intended) with fans making it to #1 here and Australia, and #3 in the US. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/REGzrwMj_N4/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/REGzrwMj_N4&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/REGzrwMj_N4&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />And last but not least...long before he was IronMan,*&nbsp;<b>Robert Downey Jr </b>broke Ally McBeal's heart (and mine too) in <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2732867">series four </a>of that show. &nbsp;He showed off his considerable piano skills and beautiful smokey voice throughout the season, perhaps no where better than when he enlisted the help of Sting to woo Ally on her birthday with a duet of Every Step You Take. It's a great version, even if the lyrics are a little on the scary stalker side.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/WO_sakIdUjw/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/WO_sakIdUjw&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/WO_sakIdUjw&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />*Also, it's just occurred to me how much the suave, dryly witted Tony Stark resembles RDJ's Ally McBeal character Larry. Anyone else see the similarities? <br /><br /><b>Honourable mentions: </b>Amy Adams, the face of a thousand internet memes aka Ryan Gosling, the entire Les Miserables crew, Scarlet Johanson, Emma Stone, Nicole Kidman several times over and the cast of Chicago.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><strike>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</strike></div><br />Aside from giving myself multiple earworms for the rest of the day, the upshot of the &nbsp;hour or so I spent interwebing for this post was that I realised a) the early 2000s were all about the musical and b) I reckon it's a film genre we totes need to bring back *looks at Baz Luhrmann*<br /><br /><br />Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-23605804309412151402014-12-05T18:04:00.002+13:002014-12-05T18:04:58.115+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: Tinsel Here, There And Everywhere<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CxaGXthL-2Y/VIEct73EjXI/AAAAAAAABFw/fjcmmVpAPC0/s1600/tree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CxaGXthL-2Y/VIEct73EjXI/AAAAAAAABFw/fjcmmVpAPC0/s1600/tree.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a>I'm pretty much a low-key sort of person in regards to decorations.<br /><br />A tiny tree that will fit on a desk, a sprinkle of tinsel, maybe some fairy lights and voila I'm done.<br /><br />Some people on the other hand can and do go full-on.<br /><br />From the Christmas tree with everything...<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1WZPKZl513s/VIEZNJTHYEI/AAAAAAAABFY/uvDDEO9GsTM/s1600/house%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1WZPKZl513s/VIEZNJTHYEI/AAAAAAAABFY/uvDDEO9GsTM/s1600/house%2B3.jpg" height="206" width="320" /></a><br />... to a house that glows so much that you've got to wonder about their power bill...<br /><br />... and if they can sleep at night, what with all the lights and things glaring in their face.<br /><br />&nbsp;Pretty to look at but terrible to live with.<br /><br />I'll think I'll stick to a much simpler and less expensive Christmas.&nbsp; Like maybe a book tree?<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AI2ZnnrPFZw/VIEaq_rne-I/AAAAAAAABFk/pGS6d_wG2p0/s1600/book%2Btree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AI2ZnnrPFZw/VIEaq_rne-I/AAAAAAAABFk/pGS6d_wG2p0/s1600/book%2Btree.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a>Of course if I was remotely crafty I would also make my own Christmas decorations.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xU-k6UZkkDU/VIEgwsAbVrI/AAAAAAAABF8/eVJtMUIuUHc/s1600/super.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xU-k6UZkkDU/VIEgwsAbVrI/AAAAAAAABF8/eVJtMUIuUHc/s1600/super.jpg" height="148" width="200" /></a>Like maybe these superhero ornaments to hang off your tree<br /><br />&nbsp;Then again it just sounds like too much work.<br /><br />Of course for those of you who are crafty maybe some of these books will give you decorating inspiration.<br /><br />Martha Stewart eat your heart.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781446305034/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781446305034/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="151" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2947317~S1"><span class="header_title_r1">Washi Tape Christmas : Easy Holiday Craft Ideas with Washi Tape</span></a><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Christmas decorations.&nbsp; Made out of tape.</span><br /><span class="header_title_r1"><br /></span><span class="header_title_r1">Now that is my kind of Christmas craft</span><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781573675222/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781573675222/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="155" /></a><span class="header_title_r1">&nbsp;</span><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2947174~S1"><span class="header_title">Trim the Tree : Christmas Ornaments to Stitch</span></a><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Just as I am not a shopper, I am also not a stitcher.&nbsp;</span><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Me and sewing go hand in hand like gasoline and a match with pretty much the same effect, in other words a disaster.</span><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Trust me you don't want me anywhere a needle and thread.</span><br /><span class="header_title_r1"><br /></span><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780811714310/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780811714310/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="160" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2947294~S1"><span class="header_title">Natural Christmas Crafts</span></a><br /><br />I really like the candle decorations on the front cover of this book.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780848743598/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9780848743598/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="156" /></a>If only I was a crafter...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2941699~S1"><span class="header_title">Have Yourself a Homemade Christmas</span></a><br /><br /><span class="header_title">A play on that Christmas song, Gooseberry the publishers of this book have been churning out Christmas craft books and cookbooks for years now.</span><br /><br /><span class="header_title">I must admit I'm very tempted to check this out, just for the Christmas cookies alone. </span><br /><span class="header_title"><br /></span><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781617690563/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781617690563/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="200" width="158" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2954889~S1"><span class="header_title_r1">Handcrafted Christmas : Ornaments, Decorations, and Cookie Recipes to Make at Home</span></a><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">And finally another Christmas craft book.</span><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Because you can never have too many.</span><br /><br /><span class="header_title_r1">Feeling inspired yet? </span>syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-24318410167833356712014-12-03T11:39:00.000+13:002014-12-05T18:08:14.897+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: A Clickty Click Christmas or I Hate ShoppingI'm not a shopper. &nbsp;I am, in truth, hopeless at it. &nbsp;There's the walking from shop to shop trying to find something I like and then if I do find something, I generally find two somethings which means of course making a decision, which is so not me, and then there's the inevitable shopper's remorse which always kicks in afterwards.<br /><br />As you can see me and shopping just don't go together. &nbsp;Give me a good book or movie or TV show any day.<br /><br />Recently though I've discovered a slightly easier way of shopping... Online. &nbsp;And it is so much easier. Well sort of... I still have trouble choosing and still get a touch of buyer's remorse afterwards.<br /><br />Maybe next year I should just hire a personal shopper to do it for me.<br /><br />Still if you're like me and looking for gift ideas of your book lover maybe some of these will help.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AmtUE5lAS-8/VH41q1tl2HI/AAAAAAAABEI/-JfvH9vUeL0/s1600/bookmark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AmtUE5lAS-8/VH41q1tl2HI/AAAAAAAABEI/-JfvH9vUeL0/s1600/bookmark.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a><a href="https://www.etsy.com/nz/shop/LillytalesShop?page=1">Bookmarks</a><br /><br />You can never have too many bookmarks.<br /><br />Especially if you're like me and have several books on the go at the same time.<br /><br />Of course finding bookmarks is pretty easy but finding unusual or quirky bookmarks takes a little bit of research.<br /><br />I kinda love these ones.<br /><br />They just fit that quirky bill. &nbsp;And even better there are lots of other designs.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q2wcpuRDOUQ/VH4nx_wIdhI/AAAAAAAABDw/ZhVJYBqM4Eg/s1600/book%2Bnecklace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q2wcpuRDOUQ/VH4nx_wIdhI/AAAAAAAABDw/ZhVJYBqM4Eg/s1600/book%2Bnecklace.jpg" height="320" width="242" /></a><br /><a href="http://store.bookriot.com/collections/bookriot/products/wooden-book-necklace">Book Necklace</a><br /><br />Bookriot is one of my favourite websites. <br /><br />There are book reviews, book lists, book tales and of course book gifts, courtesy of their Book Fetish column which features all sorts of weird and wonderful gift ideas.<br /><br />This is one that is actually a Bookriot gift and it's pretty awesome.<br /><br />I'm almost tempted to get one for myself. <br /><br />Which is part of the fun in hunting out gifts.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nMDDvdpp46E/VH4n4ZHhi_I/AAAAAAAABD4/_oN-dXv6Xkc/s1600/OOP_BannedBooks_Socks-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nMDDvdpp46E/VH4n4ZHhi_I/AAAAAAAABD4/_oN-dXv6Xkc/s1600/OOP_BannedBooks_Socks-300x300.jpg" /></a><a href="https://store.uprisebooks.org/product/banned-books-socks/">Banned Books Socks</a><br /><br />I love socks.<br /><br />All kinds of socks. <br /><br />It's kind of my thing. &nbsp;So as you can imagine I'm always looking out for unique and interesting sock designs, usually something geeky and hopefully pretty and colourful.<br /><br />These banned books socks may be in just black and white but they are still neat.<br /><br />Just another thing to add to my own personal shopping list. &nbsp;Sigh...<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TGWeZ4EjOsY/VH45lXRLQ2I/AAAAAAAABEU/yUH8NPZXD9Y/s1600/undies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TGWeZ4EjOsY/VH45lXRLQ2I/AAAAAAAABEU/yUH8NPZXD9Y/s1600/undies.jpg" height="320" width="201" /></a><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/183407598/library-due-date-card-panties-and-tank?ref=sr_gallery_6&amp;ga_search_query=book+pajamas&amp;ga_search_type=handmade&amp;ga_view_type=gallery">Library Due Date Underwear</a><br /><br />The people on Etsy are just amazing. <br /><br />The things they design are truly inspired. &nbsp;How do they come up with them I have no idea. <br />But that's okay because really all that matters is that you can buy pretty much anything in hundreds of thousands of designs, from Supernatural to Teen Wolf to Jane Austen.<br /><br />Being the Librarian that I am it probably comes as no surprise that these caught my eye. &nbsp;Because how could they not.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N0bNcB1rinA/VH4no3FnakI/AAAAAAAABDo/Ft5lIyTnzLk/s1600/nail%2Bpolish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N0bNcB1rinA/VH4no3FnakI/AAAAAAAABDo/Ft5lIyTnzLk/s1600/nail%2Bpolish.jpg" /></a><a href="http://beautyjoint.com/nails/china-glaze-capitol-colours-the-hunger-games-collection">Hunger Games Nail Polish</a><br /><br />Hunger Games fan?<br /><br />Or shopping for a Hunger Games fan?<br /><br />Then these nail polishes may be just the thing you are looking for.<br /><br />Because yeah they are Hunger Games inspired nail polish.<br /><br />Who knew?<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cf86jr48_eU/VH46QCnHLLI/AAAAAAAABEc/C85VebkyNYg/s1600/Superman-Image-iPhone-5-Hard-Case-14833049-7.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cf86jr48_eU/VH46QCnHLLI/AAAAAAAABEc/C85VebkyNYg/s1600/Superman-Image-iPhone-5-Hard-Case-14833049-7.jpeg" height="320" width="163" /></a><br /><a href="https://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/Superman-Image-iPhone-5-Hard-Case/21288568">Comic Hero iPhone Covers</a><br /><br />Batman versus Superman.<br /><br />It's one of those life questions that always comes up. &nbsp;Personally I'm more of a Batman fan but that's okay because yes there is a Batman iPhone cover too.<br /><br />Superman just looked a little bit more colourful and awesome for the blog post.<br /><br />Sorry Batman.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uvCSCVXUpGc/VH4653olCAI/AAAAAAAABEk/-vN5GaiOFRk/s1600/110929_Book_on_Bue_Book_Seat_6_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uvCSCVXUpGc/VH4653olCAI/AAAAAAAABEk/-vN5GaiOFRk/s1600/110929_Book_on_Bue_Book_Seat_6_large.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a><a href="http://tararualibrary.wordpress.com/for-sale/">The Book Seat</a><br /><br />Yes someone somewhere came up this idea. <br /><br />A seat to perch your book on so you can keep your hands free to snack and drink as you read.<br /><br />Books have never been treated so well. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZdPWThwP210/VH47jutAHhI/AAAAAAAABEs/mfzlkoq75rE/s1600/book%2Brest%2Breading%2Blamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1cAc5esTmko/VH47yt_2guI/AAAAAAAABE0/D0J9lsX6z1s/s1600/book%2Brest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1cAc5esTmko/VH47yt_2guI/AAAAAAAABE0/D0J9lsX6z1s/s1600/book%2Brest.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.probikekit.co.nz/lighting/bookrest-lamp/10609062.html">Book Rest Reading Lamp</a><br /><br />Pretty and practical too. &nbsp;A book rest that has a dual purpose as a light.<br /><br />Reading in the dark has never looked so cool.<br /><br />Though I do wonder about the fire hazard...<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lr6RZqLBpz8/VH48nbMU9nI/AAAAAAAABFA/uvu-n0PnLr8/s1600/booklo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lr6RZqLBpz8/VH48nbMU9nI/AAAAAAAABFA/uvu-n0PnLr8/s1600/booklo.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Late-for-the-Sky-5514870/dp/B000HET4YC">Bookopoly Board Game</a><br /><br />Finally a gift for the book lover who has everything.<br /><br />A board game that is sort of like monopoly but not.syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-66849325920638237162014-12-02T09:23:00.001+13:002014-12-05T16:13:51.329+13:00Voice of an angel - Anja Nissen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DiStXP3GO1A/U7wGa-nLBuI/AAAAAAAAB9Y/ODNZEvd1C5o/s200/Wild+(The+Voice+Australia+2014+Performance)+-+Single.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I usually only watch <i>The Voice Australia</i>for the "Blind Auditions". However this time round (Series 3) I got rather attached to two of the competitors, Anja Nissen and Sabrina Batshon, which kept me watching the series right up to the finale.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anja knocked out all other contestants and became the 2014 winner of the The Voice, Australia. The finale had me on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, in the hopes of her winning.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">If you have ever heard Anja sing, you will&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 17.6000003814697px;">undoubtedly</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">&nbsp;understand why she is&nbsp;said to have the voice of an angel. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">After winning the show, Anja became <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">signed to the<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">will.i.am Music Group</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">. She lists her influences as<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Patti LaBelle</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">,<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Aretha Franklin</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">,</span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Celine Dion</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">and<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Mariah Carey</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">On 1<sup>st</sup> August 2014 Anja released the self-titled debut album released through<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Universal Music Australia</span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;">. The album<span style="background: white;"> consists of covers of songs performed on <i>The Voice</i>, as well as four new covers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="background: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e0OWOgyqrxY/VHfoMpq031I/AAAAAAAAAAM/sXa69b-IKSw/s1600/Anja%2BNissen_Album%2BCover%5B2%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e0OWOgyqrxY/VHfoMpq031I/AAAAAAAAAAM/sXa69b-IKSw/s1600/Anja%2BNissen_Album%2BCover%5B2%5D.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">After reading reviews about the album it would seem it was a bit of a flop. However I wonder if that was partly due to lack of promotion as I had no idea the CD had been released until I stumbled upon it at the Waiuku Library. All bad reviews aside, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the wonders that is Anja’s voice. Yes the songs are covers, however they are still beautifully sung and are </span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 17.6000003814697px;">mesmerizing t</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">o listen to.</span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /><br /><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0070c0;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">You can find the CD on the Auckland Libraries website</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0070c0; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=Anja%20Nissen&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en" target="_blank">here</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0070c0;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-ddhpLQseQ" target="_blank">Here</a> is a sample of her&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 17.6000003814697px;">beautiful</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 120%;">&nbsp;voice.</span></span></span></div><br />LibraryGalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06139890038372010057noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-41721241119485239322014-12-01T13:16:00.000+13:002014-12-05T18:09:11.982+13:00The Twelve Posts of Christmas: Let the Madness Commence...As some of you may know I have a thing about Christmas. &nbsp;Or more exactly the Christmas of my fantasies. &nbsp;You know the kind. <br /><br />A &nbsp;roaring fire, a glittering Christmas tree, a hunky guy and of course lots and lots of snow. Sadly because we have a serious lack of the later here in New Zealand I've always been a little lacklustre about celebrating Christmas.<br /><br />That is until this year.<br /><br />Now, suddenly, I am a Christmas maniac. &nbsp;Forget about the snow, there are, I have discovered, a million other ways to have a fantasy Christmas.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OiSsRVe6ss0/VHttB-T-C2I/AAAAAAAABCY/ErptakDiUHc/s1600/NZTwitterSecretSanta.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OiSsRVe6ss0/VHttB-T-C2I/AAAAAAAABCY/ErptakDiUHc/s1600/NZTwitterSecretSanta.png" height="76" width="320" /></a><a href="https://nzsecretsanta.nzpost.co.nz/">#nzsecretsanta</a><br /><br />For the first time in my life I am being a Secret Santa courtesy of twitter. &nbsp;And it's awesome.<br /><br />You get someone and someone gets you and you try to learn what their likes and dislikes are just from reading their tweet stream. &nbsp;It can, as you can imagine, be something of a challenge. &nbsp;Which is half the fun. &nbsp;Personally I can't wait to see what my Secret &nbsp;Santa gift giver is going to get me.<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PyVMXxNhhq0/VHuyS0pRaiI/AAAAAAAABDY/-Gy2IGz6Zz0/s1600/WP_20141201_002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PyVMXxNhhq0/VHuyS0pRaiI/AAAAAAAABDY/-Gy2IGz6Zz0/s1600/WP_20141201_002.jpg" height="320" width="179" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/unique-christmas-trees/">O' Christmas Tree</a><br /><br />I have a tree. <br /><br />It's not a very big tree. &nbsp;But still I HAVE a tree. <br /><br />On my desk. <br /><br />At work. <br /><br />And it's super cute. &nbsp;And o so Christmasy. And glittering.<br /><br />And it seems kinda perfect that Dean Winchester from my all time favourite show (aka Supernatural) is in the background too.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zYrXdkH8PhM/VHt31oxbuxI/AAAAAAAABDI/WaNM8bczPls/s1600/christmas%2Bmarket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zYrXdkH8PhM/VHt31oxbuxI/AAAAAAAABDI/WaNM8bczPls/s1600/christmas%2Bmarket.jpg" height="235" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.eventfinder.co.nz/2014/christmas-market/auckland/st-heliers">Shop Until You Drop&nbsp;Or Let Your Fingers Do The Walking</a><br /><br />I hate shopping. &nbsp;And I hate Christmas shopping even more. But this year I've gotten smart. Because online is the way.<br /><br />With just a click I can shop at my favourite stores such as T2 and Typo and new discovery Society6, which has all sort of fangirly gifts. Why I didn't do this sooner I have no idea.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJ0VUkwk0sQ/VHtyI86-UkI/AAAAAAAABCw/xfHGaUOCw3c/s1600/web-image-529x338_night-sky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJ0VUkwk0sQ/VHtyI86-UkI/AAAAAAAABCw/xfHGaUOCw3c/s1600/web-image-529x338_night-sky.jpg" height="204" width="320" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kX4fVkUsFNU/VHtx3vrcRFI/AAAAAAAABCo/dCx-JhnsNBA/s1600/Milky-Way-in-Planetarium1-334x291.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://www.stardome.org.nz/whats-on/the-great-christmas-giveback/">Christmas Under The Stars</a><br /><br />I've always had a thing for the night sky. &nbsp;And added to my Christmas dream is the dream to one day see the Aurora Borealis. In Scandinavia no less. <br /><br />Going to the Auckland Stardome at Christmas time seems kinda perfect somehow. Even better you can bring along something to donate to the City Mission or the SPCA. <br /><br />How cool is that<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LeykRdlKyX8/VHtzEr9XppI/AAAAAAAABC4/iE-foCEUTgs/s1600/moviesinparks442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LeykRdlKyX8/VHtzEr9XppI/AAAAAAAABC4/iE-foCEUTgs/s1600/moviesinparks442.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a><a href="http://www.moviesinparks.co.nz/">Movies in the Park</a><br /><br />Every year I've been meaning to go and every year I somehow miss it. &nbsp;This year though I am determined to go.<br /><br />Because a movie. Outside. Under the stars.<br /><br />And that's another one crossed off the fantasy list.syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-40183284302715444172014-11-28T14:21:00.000+13:002014-11-28T16:54:23.753+13:00Secret Heroes<blockquote class="tr_bq">“Some guys got it down … secret heroes…Tom Waits… I listen more to that kind of stuff than whatever is popular at the moment, they’re not. Just witch-doctoring up the planet, they don’t set up barriers…”</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">&nbsp;- Bob Dylan interviewed by Cameron Crowe for the Biograph boxset, 1985.</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://audiblevitamins.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/panel-tom-waits-tromb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://audiblevitamins.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/panel-tom-waits-tromb.jpg" width="194" /></a></div>I half-remembered this quote recently when listening to <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=tom%20waits&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en">Tom Waits</a>&nbsp;and wondered what being a 'secret hero' might mean.<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">He's a ‘secret hero’ perhaps because he's too intense or eccentric for a wider audience, but the power of his music ripples through the art form by way of covers and &nbsp;the respect he's gets from other, much more famous, practitioners.&nbsp;</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">He’s a master of his craft, content to wander the back roads looking to the past for his inspiration; to the blues, folk, the music-hall and beyond. If you know it, his voice is instantly recognizable. It can be a mighty roar, a tender croon or a wild man's howl he uses to bring the misfits, loners and losers of his songs to life.&nbsp;</div>Possibly Tom Waits’ songs are better known than him. Most people know Rod Stewart's cover of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl8OVXC4Xeo">‘</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl8OVXC4Xeo">DowntownTrain’</a> or Bruce Springsteen’s <a href="http://youtu.be/_v4oSqEBC-U">‘Jersey Girl’</a> cover or some may be familiar with Scarlet Johansson’s <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2304206">entire album</a> of Tom Waits songs. <br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">My favourite Waits album is <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2315833">Swordfishtrombones</a></span>(‘83) &nbsp;With this album Waits started to get more adventurous with his songs and broke with the jazzy-bluesy gin/whiskey/beer-soaked nighthawk image that he’d built up through the 70s. <o:p></o:p><br /><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/rcA2_g04pMU/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/rcA2_g04pMU&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/rcA2_g04pMU&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />Waits become more of a shapeshifter, more of a restless explorer with this album. He got more adventurous with the instruments he used; the arrangements of his songs; the stories he told. He could still conjure a heart-breaking piano ballad like&nbsp;<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNwC8ETa0pg">Soldier’s Thing</a>s,&nbsp;<span style="color: red;">&nbsp;</span>when inspired. But there are also songs like <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://youtu.be/Pv8IM_-Bam0">Shore Leave</a> </span>which uses avant-garde instruments and traditional African and Balinese percussion to forge an eerily beautiful tale of a sailor wandering the streets of Hong Kong missing his wife.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">After this followed an incredible run of albums for Waits: <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2006694">Rain Dogs</a></span>, Franks Wild Years<span style="color: red;"> </span>culminating in the brilliant, wild <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b1222081">Bone Machine</a></span>.</div><div class="MsoNormal">And he’s still kicking - with <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2645890">Bad as Me</a> </span>(2011) Waits finds new ways of exploring old themes and inhabiting a rich array of characters, still impossible to pin down, to predict but somehow always Tom Waits. Or as Neil Young described him when Waits was <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://youtu.be/9laF_joukQs">inducted into the Rock and Roll hall of fame in 2011…</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: red;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal">Thinking about Tom Waits and some of the enduring themes of his work, the affinity with outcasts, the formal mastery and experimentation made me think of another ‘secret hero’; Finnish film-maker <b>Aki Kaurismaki</b>.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/explore_images/559-c3dc58e0767273c187fd2d166115ddfa/explore_1563_026_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/explore_images/559-c3dc58e0767273c187fd2d166115ddfa/explore_1563_026_original.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>Kaurismaki’s films often deal with society’s most downtrodden members and like Waits, he displays a deep compassion for the suffering for those on the fringes of society.He has a common fan in American film-maker <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=jim%20jarmusch&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en">Jim Jarmusch</a> who has paid tribute to Kaurismaki directly in his wonderful film&nbsp;<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2186672">Night on Earth</a>&nbsp;</span>(soundtrack by Tom Waits) His influence can also be felt in the work of <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=wes%20anderson&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en">Wes Anderson</a></span> and<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=richard%20ayoade&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en"> Richard Ayoade</a></span> amongst others.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />A good place to start, if new to his work, is<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2717152"> </a><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2717152">Le Havre</a>&nbsp; </span>his most recent film. The film is the tale of a young African illegal immigrant who hides out in the French port town of Le Havre &nbsp;after escaping Police. The film weaves threads of prisoner-on-the-run-thriller with wry social commentary all shot-through with Kaurismaki's &nbsp;extraordinarily deadpan wit and minimalist style.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">The rhythm of his films can seem a little jarring at first, as listening to Wait’s music can too in a different way, you need to be patient for the rich rewards that will come if you give them a chance.<o:p></o:p><br /><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/BiCmbiyE99c/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/BiCmbiyE99c&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/BiCmbiyE99c&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><br />&nbsp;<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=william%20t%20vollmann&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en">William T Volmann</a>&nbsp;</span>was&nbsp;someone else that I thought of when thinking about the idea of a‘Secret hero’ He doesn’t fit so nicely into place next to Waits as Kaurismaki does. I'd be hard pressed to really liken anybody to him.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQa69jo37yyPpSy_BcnXe7sWvkxC571FAPvldXCx9OWOp4io8ls" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQa69jo37yyPpSy_BcnXe7sWvkxC571FAPvldXCx9OWOp4io8ls" width="200" /></a></div>Vollmann’s &nbsp;books plunge headlong the deepest, darkest corners of America and other parts of the world. Vollmann writes fiction and non-fiction often blending both. Vollmann frequently crosses boundaries that other journalists or writers would never go near. He deeply immerses himself in the lives of the people he chooses to write about.<br />He’s explored the lives of <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2279157">freight-train hopping hobos</a>, <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2212636">meditated on poverty</a>, drug use and prostitution and published a seven volume essay on violence, (usefully collected into a<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2160903"> single volume</a><span style="color: red;">.</span>)</div><div class="MsoNormal">One of my favourites <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b1095677">The Rainbow Stories</a> </span>mixes his experiences with ‘boot-woman’ the girlfriends of neo-Nazi skinheads, prostitutes and drug-addicts in his neighbourhood with strangely beautiful fictional stories.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">Vollmann’s &nbsp;output is vast and far-reaching (I’ve barely scratched the surface).&nbsp; While there is a level of accessibility to Waits and Kaurismaki’s work, Vollmann’s asks a bit more of the audience. <o:p></o:p><br />But like Waits and Kaurismaki he is a 'secret hero' to more popular writers like<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=vollmann%20everywhere&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en"> David Foster Wallace</a> and <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?q=jonathan%20franzen&amp;refx=&amp;uilang=en">Jonathan Franzen</a>.</div>blertahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18069718306059775726noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-19854392398094790952014-11-19T16:00:00.000+13:002014-11-19T16:00:01.495+13:00Where have my weekends gone?.... Orange is the new black, that's where.<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kdCAdDd6QaA/VGpm0CQe_2I/AAAAAAAAAlg/ow7KITNL6Wg/s1600/81y4cLVKzAL._SL1500_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kdCAdDd6QaA/VGpm0CQe_2I/AAAAAAAAAlg/ow7KITNL6Wg/s1600/81y4cLVKzAL._SL1500_.jpg" height="320" width="227" /></a>Okay... so I recently finished this series that I was a bit dubious about watching. Yeah, yeah another jail TV series, I know. BUT, before you cast it aside like I initially did, let's see if this will get you all hooked.<br /><br />The series revolves around a character called Piper Chapman, a woman in her thirties who is sentenced to fifteen months in prison after being convicted of a decade-old crime of transporting money for her drug-dealing girlfriend. Once behind bars, Piper contends not only with the "fishbowl" of prison life (where seemingly&nbsp;minuscule&nbsp;infractions can leave one starved, stalked, or worse), but the challenges of maintaining a long-distance relationship with her&nbsp;fiance&nbsp;Larry. Piper has to deal with the demons of her past decisions and pay for the demons of others, out of which some positive human traits emerge.<br /><br />Even though it's set in a prison that serves tampon sandwiches for lunch, Orange Is the New Black is a pretty highbrow show, whether it's quoting Shakespeare's Coriolanus, name-dropping Ulysses, or analyzing Robert Frost's ''The Road Not Taken'' in a way that will permanently alter how you interpret that poem.<br /><br />In case you didn't realize, the TV show is based on <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2790931">Piper Kerman's memoir</a>, Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, about her experiences in prison.<br /><br />I'm currently eagerly awaiting the book to come in on hold for me, which I'm hoping will fill the void until the next series starts. It’s only about the need for more – no matter what more might be. I’ve become so engrossed to these characters and have had so much fun watching every single up and down that comes from being in Litchfield prison. I just want OITNB and fast.<br /><div><br /></div><div><div>Check out the trailer for series 1 <a href="http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2447353881">here</a> and place a hold on it with Auckland Libraries <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2856088">here</a>.</div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /></div>Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-37294128488909656782014-11-16T17:01:00.000+13:002014-11-16T17:01:00.467+13:00Armageddon Auckland 2014 <br />Recently over Labour weekend, Auckland hosted the annual Armageddon Entertainment Expo. I thought rather longingly about attending, but wasn’t sure it would be manageable with two rather hectic under 5 year olds, even a couple of pop culture loving ones. Then just two days before, I managed to win tickets to the show, so WAHOO! It was obviously meant to be. Here are a just a few of my highlights from the Monday I attended.<br /><br /><b>The cosplay</b><br />Due to those pesky pre-schoolers (I love them really), it has been a good 5 or 6 years since I last went to Armageddon, and oh my goodness how the cosplay has grown! My significant other and I used to lament the fact that NZ didn’t really do it on the level of overseas conventions, but that has changed indeed and I absolutely loved it :) My sons were in seventh heaven posing with an array of characters, including Iron Man, a rather amazing Dalek, and Star Wars characters galore.<br />We have some fabulous books on cosplay in our catalogue (I’m getting started on planning my costume for next year) such as:<br /><br /><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2737419">1000 incredible costume &amp; cosplay ideas</a> : a showcase of creative characters from anime, manga, video games, movies, comics, and more! / Yaya Han, Allison DeBlasio &amp; Joey Marsocci a.k.a. Dr. Grymm.<br /><br /><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2939576">Cosplay New Zealand</a> / Sylvie Kirkman.<br /><br /><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2939578">Cosplay world</a> / Brian Ashcraft and Luke Plunkett.<br /><br />And you <i>really need </i>to see <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AViOWcSJ2Kc">this video of Eveychu, the overall winner of this year’s cosplay competition</a> (not to mention the Trans-Tasman Champion 2014), with her stunning cosplay of Katniss from the Hunger Games; she really deserved her win!<br /><br /><b>The exhibitors&nbsp;</b><br /><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QynJWzy1mvs/VGLavQGUhUI/AAAAAAAAAlQ/dVR4Qn4bJf8/s1600/20141027_124002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QynJWzy1mvs/VGLavQGUhUI/AAAAAAAAAlQ/dVR4Qn4bJf8/s320/20141027_124002.jpg" width="240" /></a>Ahhhh, there was something for everyone. From the big stores such as Mighty Ape to smaller stall holders selling the most amazing pop culture goodies. I’m a steampunk fan, and picked up some stunning steampunk pretties, Achievement Christmas shopping was indeed unlocked!<br /><br />Yet our favourite stand would have to have been the Auckland Libraries one. I may be a little biased, but my aforementioned significant other and small people were extremely happy to have somewhere to put their feet up and play games on the library iPads, while I checked out the cool Makerspace badge making going on.<br /><br />I did manage to get in a little trouble though, as said SO perused the collection there for borrowing, and noticed that we loan out games…I CAN BORROW GAMES! How did I not know this? (said he) *cough cough* (said I). &nbsp;<a href="http://www.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/EN/collections/DVDsconsolegames/consolegames/Pages/consolegames.aspx">Did you know you can borrow console games from the Library?</a> We have Nintendo DS, Playstation 2 and 3, Xbox and Xbox 360, PSP and Wii games for hire….there, hopefully I'm sparing anyone else from getting into trouble :)<br /><br /><b>The celebrities</b><br />There was a huge range of awesome guests this year, none of whom I ACTUALLY got to see (blame those small people, not so good with queues). From a number of brilliant voice actors from shows such as Ben 10, Regular Show and Adventure Time, to cast members from great shows such as Stargate SG-1 and Supernatural. The big two this year were MacGyver and Stargate SG-1's Richard Dean Anderson, and Jenna Coleman, Dr Who’s current companion Clara. Who, according to the many friends that DID get to meet her, &nbsp;is just super lovely in person. I'm trying to be happy for them, really I am :) Guess I’ll just have to settle for watching her fantastic <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2937754">Dr Who episodes through our collections</a>, or perhaps a little <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2299239">Richard Dean Anderson in his earlier (and somewhat tastier) years</a> ;)<br /><br />Wondering if I cosplayed myself? Miao ;)<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RUmfLYOyiaE/VGLausLr2pI/AAAAAAAAAlI/jYbn6e_MONE/s1600/20141024_154144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RUmfLYOyiaE/VGLausLr2pI/AAAAAAAAAlI/jYbn6e_MONE/s320/20141024_154144.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />PS - would love to hear about your highlights too, please comment away!<br /><br /><br /><br />Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-84170461552563746132014-11-12T16:00:00.000+13:002014-11-12T16:00:03.240+13:00Libraries and Lolcats - a puuuuuurfect match<br />We all know that the Web was created so that physicists could share their research papers, right? &nbsp;Well, Web 2.0 was developed so that people could admire the antics of cute cats. Like this cool kitty from Coolangatta.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/YRbakPKgU5Y/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/YRbakPKgU5Y&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/YRbakPKgU5Y&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><br />Forward thinking physicists knew the value of cat memes well before they became a thing. You may have heard of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schr%C3%B6dinger's_cat">the paradox of Schrodinger’s Cat</a>. Sadly, Schrodinger didn’t know about lolcats. In fact, Schrodinger needs a serious image makeover, or at least a visit from <a href="http://spca.org.nz/default.aspx">the SPCA</a>.<br /><br />Cats feature heavily in library lore. <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2321459">Dewey the library cat</a> is one example. He was rescued by librarians in the middle of a freezing winter in <a href="http://www.spencerlibrary.com/dewey.shtml">Spencer, Iowa</a> and went on to live a long, happy life in the library, doing wonders for the town’s economy along the way.<br /><br />An example of a cat who loved Auckland Libraries was the late Xena, the St Heliers library cat. She was well known in the suburb and is deeply missed by staff and customers.<br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ByAACyaDxZM/VGKSg0codvI/AAAAAAAAAk4/nthmY_k-ToY/s1600/9781250029461.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ByAACyaDxZM/VGKSg0codvI/AAAAAAAAAk4/nthmY_k-ToY/s320/9781250029461.jpg" width="221" /></a><br /><a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/52810/10-cats-who-live-library">Here are some other cats </a>who generously lent their time and presence to libraries around the world.<br /><br />Kitties have pretty much taken over Twitter in recent times too. They seem quite suited to it: maybe it’s because they are creatures of so few words, who knows? Check out @BlindCatRescue for some truly heart-warming tweets.<br /><br />When it comes to cat rescue, who really benefits? I have often wondered this. When I rescued my blind cat a couple of years ago, I think in a small way he may well have rescued me. Author Gwen Cooper's <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2437603">blind cat Homer</a>&nbsp;changed her life (even saving her from an intruder in her apartment), as she surely changed his. And James Bowen had a much more profound experience with his new feline friend Bob helping him beat homelessness and drug addiction: <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2943031">the resulting book</a> has been a best seller.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-9311425031076918982014-11-05T15:56:00.000+13:002014-11-05T15:56:21.218+13:00Celebrity Day JobsNot content with being beautiful, famous, rich <i>and </i>having millions of followers on Twitter, some celebrities need a little more to do in their spare time. Behold! The phenomenon of the Celebrity Day Job.<p>You may be aware of Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle website <a href="http://www.goop.com/">Goop</a>, and perhaps you even subscribed to the newsletter – ironically - but then had to stop because you realised that juice detoxes, monogrammed linen napkins and 5-star hotels are just not really, and never will be, a part of your <i>actual </i>lifestyle. And maybe you’ve even - also ironically - looked at the <a href="http://www.preserve.us/">Preserve</a> website which contains some kind of <i>information </i>about <i>life </i>from plucky lifestyle guru upstart Blake Lively from Gossip Girl and then thought “yeah nah”. Perhaps you did those things. <p>But wait! There’s <i>so much more</i>. Celebs flashing their talents all over the place, expressing their boundless creativity, and doing random jobs that have nothing to do with their professional training. They have other skills that they want us to know about, so let’s indulge them, shall we? <p>Do you know that Brad Pitt, besides being a decent actor, is also a furniture designer? Sorry ladies, just because oft-voted Sexiest Man Alive on the Planet Ever designed a bed, does not mean you want to buy it. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JZcPklofgIc/VFl6pmerDGI/AAAAAAAAAh0/7buUMjeunU0/s1600/item1.rendition.slideshowHorizontal.brad-pitt-frank-pollaro-furniture-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JZcPklofgIc/VFl6pmerDGI/AAAAAAAAAh0/7buUMjeunU0/s320/item1.rendition.slideshowHorizontal.brad-pitt-frank-pollaro-furniture-03.jpg" /></a></div>Just look at that monstrosity! It would be a major pain in the neck to make every morning. I mean, it’s not like Brad Pitt is actually <i>in </i>the bed, amirite ladeeez?? <p> Instead, why not enjoy Brad Pitt doing what he does best, which is: having abs in <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2034624~S1">Fight Club</a>. <p>Now, thanks to filmmaker Sofia Coppola, single serve sparkling wine in a can with a straw is a thing. Apparently it is also a thing that you can actually buy and then, presumably also drink, because OMG celebrity bubbles! If you have tasted this, please let me know in the comments section, and also let me know if it improved your ability to direct indie films because wouldn’t it be great if a drink could do that?! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4Ixr8gRr2mE/VFl6_N6-kOI/AAAAAAAAAh8/bAHrjSw98d0/s1600/Francis_Ford_Coppola_Sofia_Blanc_de_Blancs_can_sparking_wine_photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4Ixr8gRr2mE/VFl6_N6-kOI/AAAAAAAAAh8/bAHrjSw98d0/s320/Francis_Ford_Coppola_Sofia_Blanc_de_Blancs_can_sparking_wine_photo.JPG" /></a></div><p> Or, just watch <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2036019~S1">Lost in Translation</a>, possibly Scarlett Johansson’s last good movie, and also starring the wonderful Bill Murray, who, in real life, owns a restaurant and a baseball team which keeps him busy when he’s not <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2162635~S1">wasting ghosts</a> / <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2330020~S1">reliving the same day over and over</a> / <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2142344~S1">seeking to avenge the death of his best friend who was eaten by a shark</a>.<p>Speaking of ScarJo, when she’s not looking gorgeous and acting in (mostly) bad movies she also likes to sing. Can she sing? Not really! But she’s a celeb, so she does what she wants. Randomly, in 2008 she recorded <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2304206~S1">an album of Tom Waits covers</a> and even though her main job is “actress” she managed to suck all the emotion and meaning out of a bunch of great songs. If you’re new to Tom Waits, perhaps try his album <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2006694~S1">Rain Dogs</a>, one of my all-time favourite albums ever, and featuring 100% of songs not sung by a Hollywood actress. <p>Closer to home (but not that close, he’s an Australian, right??) is Russell Crowe who, aside from being in various bands in his spare time, recently became part owner of the South Sydney Rabbitohs, a rugby league team. So either he really likes rugby league or he intends to write a song that rhymes ‘Russell Crowe’ with ‘Rabbitoh’, which is what I suspect. <p>And anyone who’s anyone has a cookbook /advice guide/ diet book /children's picture book out these days. Just a quick glance at the library shelves and I spotted such gems as: <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2578082~S1">Badass: a hard-earned guide to living life with style and (the right) attitude by Shannen Doherty</a>; <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2668224~S1">April loses it: lose 30 kilos in 30 weeks by April Ieremia</a>; and <a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2708244~S1">Dream more: celebrate the dreamer in you by Dolly Parton</a>. Celebs. Is there nothing they can’t do? <p>But my favourite example of celebrity day jobs is in the second season of the Simpsons when Homer, normally a Nuclear Safety Inspector, designs a car so shabby that it bankrupts his brother’s company:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6c1jpc-j6EE/VFl8LJtAmiI/AAAAAAAAAiI/U5JCCtUIhaU/s1600/homer%2Bcar.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6c1jpc-j6EE/VFl8LJtAmiI/AAAAAAAAAiI/U5JCCtUIhaU/s320/homer%2Bcar.bmp" /></a></div><p> Lesson learned: don't give up your day job.Louise Harperhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06437078443839551419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-31724747522997584562014-11-03T09:43:00.000+13:002014-11-03T09:43:04.460+13:00On Heavy Rotation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Recently I have been listening to four albums on heavy rotation and I can't seem to get enough of any of them. These women are crazy talented and are bringing some fresh sounds to 2014!<br /><br />I highly recommend checking them out below:<br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NBuZQeEz24s/VFGGiigTiaI/AAAAAAAAAWo/Krutw1nNC0Q/s1600/tinashe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NBuZQeEz24s/VFGGiigTiaI/AAAAAAAAAWo/Krutw1nNC0Q/s1600/tinashe.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div><div><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2947180" target="_blank">Aquarius - <b>Tinashe</b></a></div><div>This is the debut album of R&amp;B singer Tinashe. Her first single of the album <i>2 0n</i>&nbsp;is a total club banger and I love it! She's got a total Aaliyah vibe about her, particularly in this live performance on Jimmy Kimmel. What I love about this album though is that its not a throwaway album with cheap and quickly produced club banger tracks. This album is not what I expected from her, but I really am enjoying it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/caA0Ilrok1Q/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/caA0Ilrok1Q&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/caA0Ilrok1Q&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IBq2IXKwK_U/VFGLHrhuuBI/AAAAAAAAAXI/sB_0ixJKL_k/s1600/i%2Bnever%2Blearn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IBq2IXKwK_U/VFGLHrhuuBI/AAAAAAAAAXI/sB_0ixJKL_k/s1600/i%2Bnever%2Blearn.jpg" height="200" width="199" /></a></div><div><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2859125" target="_blank">I Never Learn - <b>Lykke Li</b></a></div><div>This is the third album from Swedish artist Lykke Li and once again she has captivated me with her personal brand of etheral and haunting melodies with great beats. The love songs on this album simultaneously warm my heart and tear it apart. Definitely worth a listen. Check out the first single off the album, No Rest For the Wicked.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/Hh-0y8Qe0Sw/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Hh-0y8Qe0Sw&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Hh-0y8Qe0Sw&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ChhNNCxnZ70/VFGGicewN4I/AAAAAAAAAWk/6aqRLwDjjTU/s1600/FKA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ChhNNCxnZ70/VFGGicewN4I/AAAAAAAAAWk/6aqRLwDjjTU/s1600/FKA.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div><div><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2929241" target="_blank">LP1 - <b>FKA Twigs</b></a></div><div>The debut album from British artist FKA Twigs is one of the most fresh sounds I have heard in a while. It is a mixture of synth-laden R&amp;B while evoking the sounds of bands like Portishead and Twigs' vocals being both soft yet piercing. Honestly this album is so much worth your time, she's definitely one to watch - which you can actually do live at Laneway Festival next year in Auckland! Check out her first single off it below.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/3yDP9MKVhZc/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/3yDP9MKVhZc&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/3yDP9MKVhZc&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hFivNed3e7o/VFGGiRCVTwI/AAAAAAAAAWs/P6bG2bFTPbg/s1600/jhene%2Baiko.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hFivNed3e7o/VFGGiRCVTwI/AAAAAAAAAWs/P6bG2bFTPbg/s1600/jhene%2Baiko.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2933483" target="_blank">Souled Out - <b>Jhené Aiko</b></a><div>I first heard the voice of Jhené Aiko on a Drake song (<i>From Time</i>) and immediately knew I had to see if she had any solo music out. At the time she had an EP called <i><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2927170" target="_blank">Sail Out</a>&nbsp;</i>which I fell in love with. Aiko's brand of chilled out, intimate songs are captivating for their honesty and the beauty of her voice. Her songs are about issues close to her heart, ranging from breakups, relationships, her daughter, and the death of her brother. What really sets her apart however is her talent with lyricism and wordplay. She's definitely one of my new favourite artists &lt;3<br /><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/00bumpN0Mhw/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/00bumpN0Mhw&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/00bumpN0Mhw&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div><br /></div></div>bryonykatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04467460385877320105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-26157972298797177512014-10-26T21:08:00.001+13:002014-10-26T21:08:22.842+13:00Take Me To The April Sun In Cuba...Actually more like October sun in Noosa, which doesn't sound quite as exotic but you get the picture. <br /><br />Holidays are awesome. &nbsp;And overseas holidays are even more awesome. &nbsp;Because seriously how could you not love seeing new places, trying new things (like yummy food), speaking a new&nbsp;language&nbsp;and numerous other reasons as to why travelling is just the best.<br /><br />I am about to head off on my first overseas trip in 7 years.<br /><br />Which is a) so nice, b) a little nerve wracking because I hate flying and c) just a tad depressing in that it has been 7 years since I last wandered around foreign lands. &nbsp;Not that Australia is foreign but for now it's the closest I'm getting. &nbsp;As you can imagine I have a pretty long list of all the places I want to go to, because List Girl is my middle name.<br /><br />Hopefully one day I will be able to take off and&nbsp;permanently&nbsp;travel as I work my way through said list. &nbsp;Until then I have this holiday and a pile of wonderful travel books to keep me going.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781760063849/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781760063849/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="208" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2943006~S1">Men on the menu: delicious affairs from around the world</a> / Bambi Smyth<br /><br /><i>"26 countries, 81 days, 294 meals and 75 blind-dates"</i><br /><br />I'm a sucker for a good romance. <br /><br />Any romance really. <br /><br />So a story of a woman who travels the world looking for love sounds just my kind of thing<br /><br />Romance and travel and food.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Just perfect, really.<br /><br /><br />&nbsp; <br /><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781925048179/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781925048179/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="225" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2941044~S1">Hitchy feet: a grown-up;s guide to running away from home and accidentally getting a life</a> / John Card<br /><br /><i>"John Card was a bored 30-something high school science teacher when he decided to pack it all in and run away from life"</i><br /><br />The idea of running away from it all sounds so tempting.<br /><br />Certainly it's something that I've dreamed about.&nbsp; Travelling the world and writing.&nbsp; With a suitcase filled with chocolate and cherries.&nbsp; And a laptop of course.&nbsp;<br /><br />Because life necessities.<br /><br /><div></div><div></div><div><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781760111021/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781760111021/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="208" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2935583~S1">The thing about Prague: how I gave it all up for a new life in Europe's most eccentric city</a> / Rachael Weiss</div><div></div><div><br /></div><div><i>"The story of a freewheeling Aussie girl who gives up her life in Sydney to live in <span class="exact">Prague</span>" </i></div><div><br /></div><div>Travelling the world may sound tempting but so does the idea of going to live in a foreign country, immersing ones self in the culture, the language, the lifestyle... it all sounds very romantic. </div><div><br /></div><div>The reality is probably far different and anything but romantic.<br /><br />Still one can dream...</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-48KMA5PolIM/VEQWmOWAcoI/AAAAAAAABCA/ypXZS01alsY/s1600/my%2Bsweet%2Bparis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-48KMA5PolIM/VEQWmOWAcoI/AAAAAAAABCA/ypXZS01alsY/s1600/my%2Bsweet%2Bparis.jpg" height="320" width="218" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2848071~S1">My sweet Paris</a> / Caroline Mignot<br /><br /><i>"The top 150 places for dessert in <span class="exact">Paris</span>"</i></div><div><br /></div><div>Food.&nbsp; You just knew I had to go there.<br /><br />Because how could I not.<br /><br />After all I'm the girl who went to the same patisserie in Paris every day and tried something new.&nbsp;<br /><br /></div><div></div><div>For a whole week.&nbsp;<br /><br /></div><div></div><div>And it was delish.<br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781775535157/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781775535157/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="244" /></a></div><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2943174~S1">Hot pink spice saga : An Indian culinary travelogue with recipes</a> / Peta Mathias and Julie Le Clerc.<br /><br /><i>"A love affair with food, travel and India, celebrated by two of New Zealand's favourite foodies."</i><br /><br />Another travel book and another book about food.<br /><br />This time it's India and all it's bright and colourful delights.<br /><br />I'm intrigued by the title alone</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781402291531/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781402291531/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="212" /></a></div><div><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2831749~S1">Home sweet anywhere : how we sold our house, created a new life, and saw the world</a> / Lynne Martin.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>"Lynne and her husband sold almost everything they owned and took to a global lifestyle, living out of a couple of suitcases"</i><br /><br />My other half and I dream of this.&nbsp;<br /><br />Daily.<br /><br />We have plans and counter plans and plans of plans.&nbsp; And to go with those plans I have lists.&nbsp; Endless lists of all the places and things I want to see.<br /><br />And books like this just inspire me more.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781426213786/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.syndetics.com/index.php?isbn=9781426213786/lc.jpg&amp;client=elgar&amp;type=hw7" height="320" width="245" /></a></div><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2938645~S1">The world's best cities : celebrating 220 great destinations </a><br /><br />Because I love drooling over travel books filled with lots and lots and lots of wonderful photos I just had to include at least one book that filled this passion.</div><div><br /></div><div>Of course looking through books like this means that by travel wish list just keeps getting longer and longer.</div><div><br /></div><div>What's a girl to do?</div><div><br /></div><div>Travel of course.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-62722128647710733212014-10-24T12:05:00.001+13:002014-10-24T12:05:36.509+13:00Hector and the Search for HappinessThanks to Becker Film Group, Auckland Libraries is giving away 10 double passes to <i>Hector and the Search for Happiness</i>, opening in cinemas on October 30, 2014.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuckLibraries/photos/a.248587211862714.68895.152983581423078/728727370515360/?type=1">Visit our Facebook page</a>&nbsp;to enter. This competition closes at 5pm on Sunday 26 October 2014.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>Want to know more about the movie?<br /><br />Read on!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F4.bp.blogspot.com%2F-FM5ptnjN1QE%2FVEho7SPT5kI%2FAAAAAAAAAjw%2FwCJEnM82NEY%2Fs1600%2Fhector.JPG&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FM5ptnjN1QE/VEho7SPT5kI/AAAAAAAAAjw/wCJEnM82NEY/s1600/hector.JPG" height="400" width="292" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Happiness: that elusive, mystical life goal we're all chasing, and Hector, the hero of Simon Pegg's new movie, <i>Hector and the Search for Happiness</i>, is no different.<br /><br />On the surface of it, his life seems charmed:&nbsp; a beautiful apartment, an even more&nbsp;beautiful&nbsp;girlfriend named Clara (played by Rosamund Pike) and a loyal stable of patients to his&nbsp;psychiatrist&nbsp;practice. But he the one who needs therapy? For despite all the outward appearances&nbsp;of success and happiness his life has, Hector feels something is missing. And so our dapper dressing protagonist sets out, armed with a notebook from Clara to record his findings, on an overseas&nbsp;Odyssey to discover<i> "what is happiness."</i><br /><i><br /></i>What unfolds is a series of unlikely but amusing adventures in first China (involving a night of partying with a woman who is not all she seems and a visit with a skpying monk), then Africa (in which he escapes from a murderous drug cartel) and lastly Los&nbsp;Angeles (to look up the first woman he loved Agnes, played by the always delightful Toni Collette). The action is infused with a host of colourful characters who each provide their own insights into the happiness that Hector is seeking, and he records these nuggets in Clara's journal.<br /><br />I loved these wise and perceptive little gems of insight and the way director Peter Chelsom chose to have them written and drawn across the screen as Hector wrote them down. Some of these really resonated with me like "If I seem happy, it is because I know I am loved for who I am," "Happiness is answering your calling" and the especially poignant and simple "Listening is loving."<br /><br />Being a rom-com it was&nbsp;inevitable Hector would get his happy ending but it what a wild and fun ride watching him realise he had what he was looking for all along.<br /><br /><i>Hector and the Search for Happiness</i> is based on the book of the same name by Francois Lelord: <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2489679">place a hold on a copy for yourself here</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br />Our thanks to Becker Film Group for providing tickets to an advanced screening of this film for our reviewer.<br /><br /><br />Auckland Librarieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12574555209830314635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-1939122862896973242014-10-20T16:52:00.001+13:002014-10-21T15:04:26.673+13:00American Horror Story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://static.squarespace.com/static/51b3dc8ee4b051b96ceb10de/t/541ca03be4b09194f76591a1/1411162173304/3-disturbing-new-posters-for-american-horror-story-freak-show6" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://static.squarespace.com/static/51b3dc8ee4b051b96ceb10de/t/541ca03be4b09194f76591a1/1411162173304/3-disturbing-new-posters-for-american-horror-story-freak-show6" height="200" width="145" /></a>American Horror Story is a horror television series where each season is a stand-alone story of a different horror theme. The actors remain the same in each season, but take on different roles. It's really awesome to see so many different sides to the actors. <br /><br />I am not the biggest horror fan, but had heard so many good things about this show so tried to give it a go. I started at season 1, Murder House, and I could not get past episode 1. It was toooo scary! I really only watch scary films on Halloween, and even then I mainly focus on eating the movie snacks and making jokes to stop myself being scared.&nbsp;</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A few years later though, I decided to give it another go and just start from the current season which was season 3, Coven. This season seemed much less "scary" and had a lot of sass, which is what I like! Once I started I was hooked and have gone back and watched the first two (Murder House and Asylum) as well. Asylum was excellent but terrifying and I still feel weird if I see stills from it.&nbsp;</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Throughout my love affair with AHS (despite its rocky start!) I've fallen madly in love with Jessica Lange. </div>She is. Just. Fantastic. Words cannot even describe how she is the most perfect. See? My grammar goes out the door when trying to explain Jessica Lange.<br /><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Season 4 has just started and it is called Freak Show. It is set in Florida in 1952 and tells the story of one of the last remaining circus/freak shows of the time and their bid to survive.&nbsp;</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I would highly recommend this show, and it doesn't matter what order you watch them in, so get to it!<br /><br /><br />&nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2727762" target="_blank">Murder Hous</a><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2727762" target="_blank">e</a>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2796089" target="_blank">Asylum</a>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2926961" target="_blank">Coven</a>&nbsp;(place a hold!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/66/American.horror.story.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/66/American.horror.story.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a><a href="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fen%2F8%2F8a%2FAmerican_Horror_Story_Asylum_DVD.jpg&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/8a/American_Horror_Story_Asylum_DVD.jpg" height="200" width="145" /></a><a href="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2Fseriesnews.biz%2Fwp-content%2Fgallery%2Famerican-horror-story-coven-season-3-posters%2Fthumbs%2Fthumbs_American-Horror-Story-Coven-Season-3-Poster-1.jpg&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2Fseriesnews.biz%2Fwp-content%2Fgallery%2Famerican-horror-story-coven-season-3-posters%2Fthumbs%2Fthumbs_American-Horror-Story-Coven-Season-3-Poster-1.jpg&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" width="154" /></a></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">Below is a clip of one of my favourite moments from season 4, ep 1. I can't get enough of it!</div></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/z_le5010dzU/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/z_le5010dzU&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/z_le5010dzU&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div></div>bryonykatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04467460385877320105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-46495335837802437092014-09-22T10:49:00.002+12:002014-10-09T08:00:48.183+13:00From the sick bed... Or Madly Watching All The ThingsBeing sick sucks.<br /><br />It's kind of &nbsp;obvious but I feel I just had to put it out there on behalf of .... well everyone really.&nbsp; There is though one shining light when one is sick. &nbsp;When you're at the moment between being not quite capable of standing on two feet without the room swaying from side to side and wishing for death to swallow you up and take you now. <br /><br />You know the moment. &nbsp;The one where you can lay on the couch, all&nbsp;snugly&nbsp;with tissues, water and medication nearby and just veg out in front of the television.<br /><br />It is, as they say, the perfect moment to catch up on all the things you've been missing out on or to indulge in something you love.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Y5Z8UjRFK2g/VBvUsn7rOUI/AAAAAAAABAs/Bs6j8stWIE0/s1600/fargo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Y5Z8UjRFK2g/VBvUsn7rOUI/AAAAAAAABAs/Bs6j8stWIE0/s1600/fargo.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2942013~S1">Fargo</a><br /><br />Dark, comic, and violent, Fargo is <i>The</i> show that everyone is talking about.&nbsp; And no wonder. Because it is seriously good.<br /><br />There's murder and blackmail and ruthless&nbsp;hit men&nbsp;and people with funny names. &nbsp;And it's all set in Minnesota. &nbsp;In the middle of winter. &nbsp;Where the temperature can drop to minus 20.<br /><br /><i>Minus 20</i><br /><br />Just a tad chilly then.<br /><br />So it's the perfect show to curl up on the couch and watch with a hot drink, maybe even a hot toddy.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-apyAlCeW0-w/VBt-yDeqlpI/AAAAAAAABAM/-mn6-yVClNM/s1600/penny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-apyAlCeW0-w/VBt-yDeqlpI/AAAAAAAABAM/-mn6-yVClNM/s1600/penny.jpg" height="320" width="288" /></a><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2628232/?ref_=nv_sr_1">Penny Dreadful</a><br /><br />Seriously dark and twisted Penny Dreadful is just my kind of show.<br /><br />It also features some famous characters from literature such as Dr Frankenstein and Dorian Gray. &nbsp;It also features the amazing and always lovely Eva Green.<br /><br />Who I adore. <br /><br />That she wasn't&nbsp;nominated&nbsp;for an Emmy or a Golden Globe for her portrayal of the haunted and gutsy Vanessa is a tragedy.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Knr-BoXxGjc/VB48I07zg0I/AAAAAAAABBE/xiAENlcju_M/s1600/toby-stephens-black-sails-starz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Knr-BoXxGjc/VB48I07zg0I/AAAAAAAABBE/xiAENlcju_M/s1600/toby-stephens-black-sails-starz.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2940753~S1">Black Sails</a><br /><br />Pirates.<br /><br />Do I really need to say anything else?<br /><br />Okay maybe just a little more.<br /><br />Pirates. &nbsp;Hunting for treasure. Led by Toby Stephens who is kind of swoon worthy in the bad boy way.<br /><br />Pretty much sums it up. &nbsp;It's also pretty damn good. Because Pirates.<br /><br />Did I mention pirates?<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9KvgGsTXCpI/VB48wqV-gyI/AAAAAAAABBM/bIGinmVra0g/s1600/arrow-cw-tv-show.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9KvgGsTXCpI/VB48wqV-gyI/AAAAAAAABBM/bIGinmVra0g/s1600/arrow-cw-tv-show.jpg" height="320" width="247" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2805962~S32">Arrow</a><br /><br />I'd be the first to admit that Arrow isn't a great show. &nbsp;But that's okay because it is a good show. &nbsp;One that keeps getting better and better with each season.<br /><br />It's a superhero show. So there's costumes and some kick ass fighting and training scenes. &nbsp;There is also the awesome Felicity Smoak. &nbsp;IT girl&nbsp;extraordinaire&nbsp;who is geeky and funny and all-round wonderful. &nbsp;And there's Olicity moments. &nbsp;Which as far as I'm concerned is the only OTP (One True Pairing)<br /><br />And if that doesn't work for you well there's always Stephen Amell's abs. &nbsp;Which almost deserve a show of there own.<br /><br />Pure indulgence.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NesIiZOnSxw/VB49tjtYeNI/AAAAAAAABBc/waoMev4c2ZQ/s1600/per.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NesIiZOnSxw/VB49tjtYeNI/AAAAAAAABBc/waoMev4c2ZQ/s1600/per.jpg" height="320" width="268" /></a><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2851903~S32">Perception</a><br /><br />Quirky, intelligent, entertaining. &nbsp;These are just a few words that I would use to describe this show.<br /><br />And it's glorious. &nbsp;And it's all due to Eric McCormack's (he of Will and Grace fame) portrayal of Dr Daniel Pierce, a neuroscience professor who helps the FBI while at the same time battling his own mental health issue, paranoid&nbsp;schizophrenia.<br /><br />He's also an fascinating lecturer. So much so that I almost wish his classes were real just so I could attend them.<br /><br />Pretty incredible for a fictional character.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.elgar.govt.nz/record=b2477402~S32">Angel</a><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4rjjDRQ-e4E/VB9SG-Bk0DI/AAAAAAAABBs/mnezqis3F38/s1600/angel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4rjjDRQ-e4E/VB9SG-Bk0DI/AAAAAAAABBs/mnezqis3F38/s1600/angel.jpg" height="236" width="320" /></a>I know that I have mentioned this show in the past. &nbsp;But regularly marathoning my favourite shows is just something that I do. &nbsp;And this is one that I have been marathoning recently. <br /><br />Weirdly enough Angel isn't my favourite character. &nbsp;Instead I adore Fred and Wesley (who becomes a total badass) and of course, Spike.<br /><br />It also made me cry. &nbsp;Like buckets. &nbsp;Because Joss Whedon is a cruel, cruel man. &nbsp;If you watch season 5 you'll know what I mean.syfygirl21http://www.blogger.com/profile/11410144450119642807noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-325317509748959886.post-5273077640027270202014-08-13T09:23:00.001+12:002014-08-13T09:32:43.353+12:00Oh Captain! My Captain!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Yesterday a wonderful actor and comedian died. Robin Williams filled my childhood with such joy and laughter and I want to share with you a few of my favourite movies that he brought to life ! Here are clips from some of my (to this day!) favourite films, featuring Robin Williams.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2386125" target="_blank">&nbsp;Aladdin</a> - Genie</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/99Op1TaXmCw/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/99Op1TaXmCw&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/99Op1TaXmCw&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><a href="record:http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2047166" target="_blank">Mrs. Doubtfire&nbsp;</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/kFeaK5UJ8O4/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/kFeaK5UJ8O4&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/kFeaK5UJ8O4&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2035120" target="_blank">Ferngully</a> - Batty (apologies for the quality!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/sbVUShONIgg/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/sbVUShONIgg&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/sbVUShONIgg&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2046905" target="_blank">Dead Poets Society</a></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/w8fu-hq3S7A/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/w8fu-hq3S7A&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/w8fu-hq3S7A&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2046923" target="_blank">Good Morning Vietnam</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/wuk8AOjGURE/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/wuk8AOjGURE&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/wuk8AOjGURE&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div><br /></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">I couldn't find the right clip, but I'd strongly suggest that you all go and watch <a href="http://search.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/?itemid=|library/marc/supercity-iii|b2025444" target="_blank">Hook</a> again (or for the first time) too, it's absolutely worth it.<br /><br />Farewell, O Captain, my Captain.&nbsp;</div><div><br /></div></div>bryonykatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04467460385877320105noreply@blogger.com0